City zoning committee to hear cases on NW Side proposals

The rezoning of a Chicago Housing Authority-owned building in Independence Park and a two-flat in Old Irving Park are among the local projects on the agenda of the City Council Zoning Committee meeting on March 27.

The CHA is seeking to rezone an existing four-flat at 3754-56 N. Central Park Ave. to allow for the addition of two basement apartments. The housing agency acquired the property in 2007.

The proposal calls for the 6,153-square-foot parcel to be rezoned from RS-3, which is intended primarily for single-family homes and two-flats, to B2-2, which would allow up to six residential units. Plans call for the property to be rezoned back to RS-3 after the construction is completed, which is the predominant zoning in the area.

Alderman John Arena (45th) was scheduled to hold a community meeting on the proposal on March 21. The development site, which is located across from Murphy School, 3539 W. Grace St., runs along the eastern boundary of the ward.

Also on the agenda is a proposal to rezone the site of a two-flat at 3943 N. Lowell Ave. to allow for the build-out of the attic, which would be used as additional living space for the second-floor unit. Minor interior improvements are also planned for the first floor.

The current building is nonconforming under the site’s split zoning, RS-2 and B3-1, and the proposed RT-3.5, which is intended for multi-family construction, would allow for a construction permit to be issued for the renovations.

The agenda also includes a proposal to rezone from B3-1 to B2-2 to accommodate the construction of a 15-unit apartment building at 4015-25 N. Narragansett Ave., where a canoe shop was once located. A plan to build a Dunkin’ Donuts restaurant at that location failed to materialize last year after the Zoning Board of Appeals denied a permit request for a drive-through facility.

The zoning committee’s meeting will be held at 10 a.m. Monday, March 27, in the Council Chamber at City Hall, 121 N. LaSalle St.

Arena’s chief of staff Owen Brugh said that a zoning proposal for a storage warehouse and a residential development at Northwest Highway and Milwaukee Avenue is expected to be added to the committee’s agenda. The Chicago Plan Commission recently approved the project.

In addition, the plan commission in February approved a development proposal for several vacant lots at Lawrence and Laramie avenues, but the zoning committee has not heard the proposal, which is not listed on the March 27 agenda. The plan calls for the construction of 39 apartments and several storefronts.